Alan Price and the Colossus of Rhodes (The Nephilim Chronicles) (24 page)
Read Alan Price and the Colossus of Rhodes (The Nephilim Chronicles) Online
Authors: Jonathan Yanez
on his side, he would have put his ability of speed to use and retreat to the
furthest corner of the world. The twelve warriors around him hovered now even more
terrifying than anything he had ever encountered. Wings beating against the dry
desert air, faces determined to kill and maim, softly spoke a chant that slowly
began to pick up in speed and tempo. “Death is our sole purpose, killing our
nature. Let all wickedness that stands against us fall under our righteous blade.
We the Angels of Death, have never and will never taste defeat, the only thing
we will ever taste is the blood of our enemies. Death is the only thing we
bring.”
As the chant gathered in momentum
and volume Sera shouted instructions, “Alan, Jericho, with me. We’ll take out
the giants pushing back the front of the line. The rest of you slaughter the
Fallen who are encircling our brothers and sister.”
voice to the group. Without thinking, without knowing if it was appropriate even
Alan found himself repeating the words. “Death is our sole purpose, killing our
nature.” No one stopped him as the words left his lips, so he continued.
The scene was unlike anything Alan
had ever experienced. The chant was a shout now, a roar that started deep
within the chest of each warrior and exploded into the air. Energy encircled
the group; adrenaline flowed to every bone and muscle in Alan’s body.
and fell towards the battle below like powerful comets let loose by the galaxy.
Alan was left alone flapping his wings before he realized what had happened.
His mouth was dry, his tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth.
Well,s it’s
now or never.
Alan inverted his body and forced
his wings to carry him downward. He could see Sera and Jericho break away from
the pack and head towards the opposite end of the battlefield. Alan said a
silent prayer and beat his wings as hard as he could in their direction.
Chapter 68
Blood flowed from multiple cuts
across Michael’s body. All around him, the Fallen’s superior weapons and
freshness to the battle were overpowering the Angels, despite their valiant
efforts. Although not much time had elapsed between when the first wave of
enemies hit their front ranks and now, it was still enough to tire his Angels
who traveled for hours before engaging in battle.
ruined shafts for an abandoned shield not properly used by its previous owner. His
left wing was almost entirely red with his own blood. “To me! To me!” he
screamed over the clamor of war. His Angels immediately responded, forming one
long line that spanned as far as he could see. It was this line and this line only
that protected his army’s rear that still fought the enemy Nephilim’s front.
“Hold the line!”
Michael wasn’t sure how far his
ragged voice could be heard but he knew others would pass down the order.
Without warning, the enemy crashed into their ranks again. Audible and physical
elements permeated the air. The Fallen were much stronger than their Nephilim
underlings. Each crash from the enemy brought not only a physical push but the
wide variety of enemy abilities also bore down on them. Electric shocks, pointed
icicles the size of spears and buckets of acid left Angels broken and bloodied.
from burning black acid. Michael was left defenseless as a group of demons
descended on him with swords and short spears. He tore out the throat of the
first, knocked the second one unconscious but there were too many. Ardat’s
voice played in his ears as he was pushed back and drug to the desert floor.
Your
Creator has forsaken you.
Darkness covered Michael’s vision.
He prepared himself for his final moments but something was wrong. His eyes
weren’t closed, yet darkness still shaded him. The leathery fingers around his
throat eased off as demons all around him cried out in fear. Angels were
cheering. Michael’s attackers fell away from him as he raised himself on his
elbows.
the sky all around the battlefield. Each landing brought an impact more
powerful than a shooting star. Waves of sand exploded into the air. Michael
already knew what was happening. Despite the metallic taste of blood that
dripped from his mouth he laughed. Alan and Danielle, against all odds, were
successful in their mission.
Chapter 69
angles. Speeding towards the fight was one of the scariest things he had ever
forced himself to do. The desert floor was a churning mass of the fighting and
dying. Thousands of combatants fought for their own lives while trying to take
their opponent’s.
Alan had to tear his eyes from the
mayhem of battle below. There was no time to take in the scene around him;
there was only time to react. Sera and Jericho were already in conflict with
the first giant.
thick black beard and dark armor to match. Jericho was flying in front of a colossal
Nephilim-turned-giant, dodging clumsy blows from the monster’s oversized club.
As Alan considered his options, Sera
sprang to action. The female leader of the Death Angels landed on the giant’s
right shoulder; in the next second, she swung the blade of her sword across the
giant’s throat. It was a perfect strike, landing between the bottom of her
opponent’s helmet and above the ridge of his breastplate. Alan fought the urge
to vomit as the oversized head fell to the ground with a sickening smack. Alan
did his best to swallow the remains of his last meal before they insisted on
also landing on the sand.
A cheer rose as the giant fell but
Alan knew their work was far from done. Sera and Jericho were already on their
way to the next giant. Alan felt that even though they could handle the giants
on their own it was his duty to help wherever he could. Instead of charging the
same large enemy they chose as their next target he directed his path towards
another,
crooked yellowing teeth and a hammer the size of a car. Alan chose his target
because he seemed to be doing the most harm to his fellow comrades.
Here we go,
Alan said to
himself willing his wings to pick up speed. Sword held tightly in his right
hand, he flapped towards his enemy, gaining momentum by the second. He was
planning to hit the giant’s left side with his sword and the full force of his
weight, hoping that would be enough to topple his foe. Alan never got the
opportunity to see if his plan would work. From amidst the chaos of battle below
Dominic Drencher and Kyle Brown appeared out of nowhere. They launched
themselves up off the ground and through the air. Both men tackled Alan before
he reached his target.
would have been strong enough to carry them all had it not been for Kyle’s
right arm grabbing onto and twisting his left wing.
The world spun and contorted around
him until Alan thought he was going to be sick after all. Still he managed to
keep them airborne. What seemed like a full minute passed before exhaustion
took Alan. With one final grunt, Alan decided that if he was going to go down,
he was going to cause his enemies to suffer with him. Unsure of how high off
the ground he was, Alan consented to the sand’s harsh embrace. Forcing both
wings closed behind him, all three men plummeted to the desert floor.
Kyle was on Alan’s left side
clutching on like a small monkey onto its mother for safety; Dominic was holding
on to Alan’s chest and shoulders tugging every few seconds in an effort to
bring him down. Alan had a moment to choose who should withstand the worst of
the blow. Even as the question presented itself, he knew.
the stone floor in the weapons room, Alan prepared to bring down Dominic. It
wasn’t that hard. With Sera, Alan never wanted to hurt her; Dominic on the
other hand was an entirely different feeling.
Alan plummeted to the hot sand
below at a speed approaching Mach 1. Releasing his sword, he prayed he would be
able to find the blade again despite the chaos below. Both hands free he
grabbed Dominic under the armpits and lifted him up until the two foes were
engaged in an awkward embrace. Instantly, Dominic’s struggling stopped.
his lips as he practically felt his enemy’s thought process traveling from
mysterious wonder to frantic realization. As the ground approached ever closer,
it was too late for any of them to change tactics. With bone crushing intensity
that forced all the air from Alan’s lungs, the unlikely trio slammed against
the desert landscape. The impact was teeth shattering.
Alan didn’t know where he was for a
moment. Disoriented, he stumbled from his landing spot. They were in a
completely different portion of the battlefield. Instead of giants and Nephilim
waging war around them, Angels with white and black wings battled against what
Alan could only guess were the Fallen. By the time Alan’s mind stopped spinning
and he was able to make sense of his surroundings, Dominic Drencher was
struggling to his feet.
was motionless a few yards to the left. Despite the harsh landing, Dominic was
already conscious and wobbling in an attempt to stand. “Alan Price,” he said
with venom in his voice, “I am so happy to see you again and to have yet
another opportunity to kill you.”
Alan forced himself to stand
straight as images of their first and second meetings came to mind. Fear and
anxiety told him to stay still and motionless. The anger lying deep within told
him to take action before his enemy had the chance to gather himself.
men who had lost their lives in an effort to save others. It was their memory
that steeled Alan for the moments to come.
Dominic leaned down to the desert
floor and picked up an abandoned sword. The blade was clearly one of the
Fallen’s new weapons. Fresh gore dripped off the dark blade in thick clumps.
“I’ve been waiting for you, Alan,” Dominic shouted over the uproar of war.
“This is going to hurt you more than it’s going to hurt me. Maybe even as much
as your two friends you lost on the ship when you got those flashing blue rave
wings.”
Alan felt rage swell in his heart
at the mention of his dead friends. Instead of words, he felt his wrath take
the form of physical action. His legs began to churn underneath him.
Dominic’s face as he witnessed the once timid Alan Price now charge him on the
battlefield. Dominic started running forward to intercept his opponent. Sword
in his left hand, Dominic also raised his empty right hand. Energy began to
gather in his palm. His Nephilim ability was manifesting just as Alan remembered
it from the fight on the cargo ship.
With a laugh befitting a maniac,
Dominic began sending bolts of explosive energy at Alan. On instinct more than intention,
Alan’s wings moved forward and swatted away every explosive attack Dominic
launched. No pain touched his wings as they made contact with Dominic’s power
or explosive energy. No burning flesh wafted to his nostrils.
two men raced towards one another. Alan was ready for what was to come. With
the last distance of hot sand eaten away, the two warriors clashed. Dominic
raised the sword high and brought it down on Alan’s uncovered head.
Alan’s speed saved him once again.
His right hand caught Dominic’s left arm at the wrist. Dominic roared in anger
unable to move under Alan’s superior strength. The dark Nephilim began charging
yet another blast of explosive energy in his right hand. Alan prepared to
intercept the attack. What he wasn’t prepared for was Kyle’s reentry to the
fight.
Alan felt Kyle jump on his back and
place a forearm around his throat. “What are you doing, Alan? It doesn’t have
to be like this. You can still join us. We can rule over the humans together.
We aren’t weak anymore. We have powers that will make us gods among men.”
power gave him the strength to match Alan. Right hand unable to release the
hold on Dominic’s wrist, Alan moved his left hand to Kyle’s forearm placed
around his throat. He tore at Kyle’s arm until he could breath. “Kyle, they’ve
lied to you. Stop, stop this.”
The red energy charge in Dominic’s
right hand was still growing. Sweat beaded down the madman’s face as he
prepared to deliver a devastating blow to Alan’s chest. He was so close, Alan
could smell the sulfur building; he could see the madness in Dominic’s dilated
pupils. “Today is the day you finally die, you blue-winged freak!”
was going to die, he could accept that. In a strange sort of way, he almost
welcomed the idea. No more depression, no more fear, it would all be over. Just
as easily as the acceptance of death crossed his mind, so too did the
realization that it was up to him to avenge his fallen teammates’ death. If he
was going to die, then they were all going to die. Releasing the hold on Kyle’s
arm Alan surrendered to the choke. Instead, he wrapped his left arm around the
back of Dominic’s neck and drew him close. “A long time ago I tried to kill
myself,” Alan choked out the words. “Now I know why I wasn’t able to: because
we were all meant to die together.”
Alan could feel Kyle’s hold ease
the slightest bit in confusion at his surprising comment. Dominic also
hesitated for a split second before a wicked smile spilt his lips. “That’s the
spirit, Alan. If things only could have been different, we may have been friends.
Well, see you in the next life, kid.” Dominic pressed his right hand holding
the massive amount of stored swirling red energy to Alan’s chest.